Our topic for Conversations this week was EarthCast09 which led to a discussion about broadcasting live with students. Sheila shared her experiences in broadcasting with her 7th grade students during EarthCast08. Matt Montagne joined us near the end of the hour to talk more about Earthbridges and EarthCast09 and his students' work with Gator Radio. The chat room was filled with discussion as usual so be sure to check that out too. Please visit the EarthCast voicethread and leave your comments.

Chat Log

11:31:17 Maria on vacation. : should be streaming - ustream and ETT a
11:31:36 Maureen : Ustream is up
11:32:13 PeggyG : hearing both now-turning one off :-)
11:32:23 sheila : Hi Gail
11:32:23 LParisi : Welcome Gail.
11:32:27 PeggyG : great slide :-)
11:32:37 sheila : I try
11:32:44 KarenJan : hearing ok
11:32:54 PeggyG : It's perfect! good job!
11:32:56 sheila : Hi KarenJan! I'm down the street. Come on down!
11:32:57 gail : hi everyone... here for a little while today :)
11:33:02 LParisi : HI Karen!
11:33:04 KarenJan : Hi, Sheila!
11:33:11 KarenJan : from down the street!
11:33:15 gail : sheila is too soft
11:33:16 KarenJan : Hi, Lisa!
11:33:22 PeggyG : Hi KarenJan-great to see you
11:33:34 PeggyG: I'm really looking forward to the Earthcastathon
11:33:58 PeggyG : People seem so confused that it actually starts the day before on April 21
11:34:22 LParisi : http://earthbridges.net/
11:34:25 PeggyG : http://earthbridges.wikispaces.com/Earth+Day+2009
11:34:32 KarenJan : Hi, Peggy!
11:34:43 PeggyG : my link is the schedule for the event
11:35:45 KarenJan : no, her voice is great
11:36:12 PeggyG : Matt's radio show students will be doing a great segment
11:37:26 PeggyG : http://earthbridges.net/live I love this page because it gives you multiple ways to view the live streams throughout the event
11:37:59 PeggyG : http://earthbridges.wikispaces.com/Media+Bin
11:38:21 sheila : http://tinyurl.com/earthdayNH
11:38:30 Maria on vacation. : http://voicethread.com/share/420500/
11:38:59 PeggyG : the voicethread is on the earthbridges.wikispaces.com page
11:39:49 Maria on vacation. : Hello Jim- welcome
11:39:50 PeggyG : yes starts on Tuesday and goes through Wed.-that's what is confusing to people :-)
11:40:23 PeggyG : Your page is a great model for people Sheila!
11:41:26 PeggyG : the interactive quiz sounds like so much fun!
11:42:17 KarenJan : @shiela - your website is an excellent resource for Earth Day for educator, parent and student involvement
11:42:17 PeggyG : Hi Janni and Stacy
11:42:29 Janni Black : Hi Peggy
11:42:31 stacy : Good morning, everyone
11:42:48 LParisi : Morning, Stacy
11:42:49 PeggyG : http://earthbridges.wikispaces.com/Earth+Day+2009
11:43:02 PeggyG : that's the schedule in case you missed it earlier
11:43:09 Janni Black : Wow - I don't know how she organized this all!
11:43:24 Maria on vacation. : Sheila is good!!
11:43:37 KarenJan : just shared that link through twitter
11:43:37 Janni Black : I am so-o-o-o-o impressed!
11:44:07 Jim Beeghley : Need some type of time delay for chat participants
11:44:17 stacy : Jim, how do you do that?
11:44:42 liserhoops : Time delay is a great idea
11:45:48 PeggyG : sounds like a great opportunity for teachers to teach students about ettiquette for chat rooms
11:45:51 LParisi : Good morning, Colleen.
11:45:56 Jim Beeghley : I don't know just saying it was wouldbe be nice to have
11:45:56 liserhoops : I missed the beginning. What age group students is she doing this with?
11:45:57 Janni Black : Improvising is a necessary skill in this arena for sure
11:46:10 colleenk : Hi Lisa!
11:46:39 stacy : sounds like a good plan
11:46:46 PeggyG : great plan Sheila!
11:46:55 Maria on vacation. : Sheila works in middle school
11:47:19 PeggyG : having students prepare questions in advance sounds helpful
11:47:59 Maria on vacation. : I think sheila teaches 7th grade - science
11:48:06 Janni Black : I think that's a great plan - I think that younger students will have a hard time using backchanneling constructively
11:48:12 sheila : yes i do
11:48:50 PeggyG : I'm assuming much of the webcastathon is audio only, right?
11:49:28 stacy : having consequences set out at the beginning is also important
11:49:32 PeggyG : the backchannel isn't that important because it's mostly "presentations" and not conversations
11:49:33 liserhoops : I am totally new to this and am excited to hear how it is being used for kids that are my son's age. He is not very engaged in traditional classroom lectures.
11:49:42 sheila : We will be ustreaming some photos
11:50:01 Janni Black : peggyg - yes, but it becomes a distraction (the backchannel)
11:50:29 PeggyG : that's a great idea Sheila--practice in a smaller group setting with chat
11:50:46 Maureen : MY 7th graders even have a hard time being constructive on a google doc. They need more practice in a very controlled environment.
11:51:10 PeggyG : I agree about the backchannel Janni. You don't hear a lot of what's being said and try to keep up with the chat
11:51:47 Janni Black : yes, Maureen, it's that part of being a responsible digital citizen and they do need help, structure, and practice
11:52:17 PeggyG : Sheila's students have had the experience of being in a backchannel chat with the Antarctica scientists
11:52:41 liserhoops : I couldn't get the middle schoolers to engage in my google docs project either.
11:53:11 KarenJan : funny, how many names do we all have due to social networking?
11:53:51 liserhoops : I use the same one for all except Facebook.
11:54:05 KarenJan : @liser - what do you do for SL?
11:54:31 liserhoops : SL?
11:54:39 KarenJan : Second Life
11:54:41 PeggyG : great question KarenJan--that's one reason I have such a hard time in SL. I can't keep track of people's SL names
11:54:52 liserhoops : It has not been working for me.
11:54:54 Janni Black : I've often thought that we should help students learn BC by having them do this more often during classroom lessons
11:55:07 KarenJan : @peggy - I agree - it's so hard, i often forget my own name!
11:55:13 PeggyG : me too!!
11:55:57 KarenJan : not total strangers any longer!
11:55:57 PeggyG : I worry that so much effort may need to go into using the "tool" such as backchannel and not on the content
11:55:58 liserhoops : @KarenJan I have tried a SL few times and moved around and even got to the ESL room and met a student, but then my screen freaked out.
11:56:16 Maureen : Have to go... will have to listen to the podcast.
11:56:25 PeggyG : bye Maureen
11:56:40 Janni Black : PeggyG - it is a slippery slope, for sure
11:57:28 PeggyG : What a great story about the skype call with the principal from Japan! :-)
11:57:32 LParisi : http://www.macfound.org/site/c.lkLXJ8MQKrH/b.4773437/k.3CE6/New_Study_Sh...
11:58:08 Janni Black : I wonder if students should learn BC primarily while listening to pre-recorded sessions -- that way they can focus on live content without the distraction
11:58:25 KarenJan : BC?
11:58:31 Janni Black : backchanneling
11:58:36 KarenJan : of course
11:58:38 PeggyG : that was my though too Janni
11:58:42 PeggyG : thought
11:59:24 KarenJan : tough for me to backchannel and attend to content presentation, is it just me? can kids do it better? any proof?
11:59:47 Janni Black : no - I struggle too, and that's what makes me think of the learning experience for students
12:00:08 liserhoops : I know that my daughter is interested in theater and performing and she has learned wo much from watching others online.
12:00:13 PeggyG : I agree KarenJan. I think it's tough for adults as well as kids. You miss out on a lot of the content when you are backchanneling
12:01:06 liserhoops : I don't know what backchanneling is, but it sounds like a time delay, moderation option. ?
12:01:26 PeggyG : I have seen some teachers provide an online discussion environment after a presentation such as CoverItLive and that makes a lot of sense to me
12:01:28 Maria on vacation. : If we provided a variety of experiences for students they will grow and rise to the occasion and become more proficient at using this valuable tool.
12:01:36 KarenJan : can you guys explain backchanneling for @liser?
12:01:54 Maria on vacation. : This chat is an eample of a bck channel
12:01:58 PeggyG : we are backchanneling right now--typing in the chat while the conversation is going on via audio stream
12:02:30 PeggyG : it's not delayed-it's real time while it's live
12:02:55 liserhoops : Or second life!
12:03:13 liserhoops : multi tasking
12:03:20 PeggyG : that's the big problem with backchanneling--can easily get off the topic and even through presenters off from their planned content
12:03:35 liserhoops : lol
12:03:39 stacy : Oh. we've NEVER gotten off topin in a back chat LOL
12:03:42 PeggyG : I can't type!! I meant throw presenters off the topic
12:04:28 PeggyG : modeling it while they watch is a great way to teach them-important!
12:04:48 liserhoops : What a great way to show metacognition
12:05:11 stacy : Lisa..that would be great. My admin doesn't know enough to block this yet
12:05:56 PeggyG : listening to an archived show and using something like CoverItLive for them to reflect on what they are learning/hearing seems like a better learning experience than live backchanneling
12:06:11 sheila : Most people at my school don't know what I do . ...
12:06:13 stacy : Is cove rit live and edtech free?
12:06:13 liserhoops : I haven't tried at school yet, so I don't know if it is blocked.
12:06:18 Janni Black : yes, I like this idea, PeggyG
12:06:21 stacy : sheila...and let's keep it that way
12:06:26 sheila : :)
12:07:21 LParisi : Yes, Stacy...both are free.
12:07:34 PeggyG : I often have to listen to the archived sessions to hear what I have missed because of the chat
12:07:58 liserhoops : Some of us can multitask better than others!
12:08:02 PeggyG : and vice versa--often the chat log provides great information that I can read later
12:08:23 Janni Black : Would be interesting to have students "analyze" the main points of a live session, and then have them analyze the archived backchannel then compare then discuss how the tool is being used or not used effectively
12:08:36 PeggyG : great idea Janni!!
12:09:11 stacy : thanks, lisa
12:09:59 liserhoops : Can any member of EdTechTalk run a Cover It Live?
12:10:13 Maria on vacation. : cover it live is independent of ETT
12:10:28 PeggyG : if a student doesn't have good typing skills it's very hard for them to keep up with a backchannel chat--the topic moves on before they get done typing
12:10:41 PeggyG : anyone can use coveritlive-free online tool
12:10:51 Maria on vacation. : http://www.coveritlive.com/
12:10:53 liserhoops : @Maria on vacation thank you for answering my questions!
12:11:28 stacy : gives kids another "voice"
12:11:30 liserhoops : Yeah ESL kids!
12:12:01 Janni Black : I love what is being shared now -- it's specifics on how to properly structure this!!
12:12:19 PeggyG : there was a great K12online presentation this year about a high school teacher using coveritlive with his students--well worth listening to because he explains the value of doing it
12:12:47 KarenJan : @peggy - missed that one can you share the link?
12:12:58 PeggyG : looking for it
12:13:27 KarenJan : @lparisi - speaks to the importance of UDL - muliple methods of engagement, presentation and expression. we must give our kids choices
12:14:28 PeggyG : http://k12onlineconference.org/?p=330 Scott Snyder was the presenter
12:14:35 liserhoops : Are you ladies talking Skyping or on the phone or what?
12:15:09 sheila : WE are on skype and then streaming out to you
12:15:17 stacy : which is important
12:15:28 PeggyG : Scott really emphasizes how backchanneling can give a voice to second language learners and students who don't tend to speak up
12:15:53 stacy : skype blocked in my school
12:17:01 liserhoops : Universe Design for Learning is another website?
12:17:11 PeggyG : @stacy-could you get it unblocked for a specific purpose or is the problem downloading it on computers?
12:17:46 stacy : classroom breakout
12:17:49 LParisi : karen janowski
12:18:00 PeggyG : KarenJan is the best resource ever for UDL!!!
12:18:08 stacy : Peggy, I have jumped through every hoop imaginable...they just won't do it
12:18:09 liserhoops : Liser is Lisa pronounced with er at the end... old nickname
12:18:19 stacy : I have gtalk, but they are so afraid of Skype
12:18:28 PeggyG : so sorry Stacy!!
12:18:42 stacy : I was trying to get it for grandparents' day...that didn't work.
12:18:43 Janni Black : I love the idea, Lisa
12:18:51 stacy : NO
12:19:08 liserhoops : I friended a student that graduated.
12:19:09 stacy : Not until they have graduated from college
12:19:25 stacy : I have enough dealing with their parents12:19:42 stacy : good response, Lisa
12:19:44 PeggyG : wonder if you could get them to consider it by arranging some "free" professional development for teachers via Skype? I did a whole session with a group of teachers. I was in my living room and they were together in a classroom. It worked great!
12:20:28 liserhoops : Actually I friended them on Facebook
12:20:35 stacy : Peggy...they are so afraid if they open it in the district, even to one computer, that something will happen and the etire district will be compromised.
12:21:09 stacy : I will befriend students who have graduted on FB, Twitter, etc. but not before that.
12:21:14 PeggyG : that's what I thought--security fears for downloaded software
12:21:15 katydel : hello
12:21:16 liserhoops : I haven't used Skype
12:21:35 stacy : Yes, Peggy. that's the reason
12:21:41 PeggyG : I couldn't function without skype--do tons of planning meetings via skype
12:21:50 katydel : jose are you
12:21:56 stacy : I use it at home..just not at work
12:23:08 PeggyG : I did a really fun skype call with some 5th graders in North Carolina. They were studying states and called me to learn about AZ. Even the principal joined in the conversation
12:23:38 stacy : Hey, Matt! Welcoe
12:23:38 PeggyG : we just talked and used the video though--not using backchannel
12:23:41 stacy : or welcoome
12:23:51 stacy : or welcome...I'll get it right some day
12:23:55 matt montagne : hey all
12:24:03 PeggyG : Hi Matt-you missed Sheila's great explanation about Earthcastathon :-)
12:24:17 matt montagne : 2 mins
12:24:23 liserhoops : You said you were concerned about people wanting to share information...
12:24:42 katydel : hello matt
12:25:35 matt montagne : ready if you still would like
12:25:50 matt montagne : rats, sorry I missed it Peggy!
12:26:06 katydel : thank you for your comment to my students tomorrow in class they will be real happy
12:26:18 liserhoops : Va a ver conversación en español??
12:26:42 sheila : si
12:27:01 katydel : answer i meant
12:27:09 sheila : check out earthbridges.net/live one channel is for Spanish
12:27:28 PeggyG : Matt's students are very well coached about the radio show!
12:27:58 sheila : Gator radio - show with Matt's students
12:28:15 PeggyG : you should definitely tune in to the Gator Radio shows! The students do an incredible job!
12:28:22 liserhoops : I want it!
12:28:26 sheila : I agree!
12:28:50 PeggyG : http://gatorradio.blogspot.com/
12:29:01 sheila : Thanks Peggy.
12:29:06 PeggyG : his students are so professional!!
12:30:38 stacy : matt's kids are older, right?
12:30:49 sheila : yes, high school
12:31:17 sheila : They are very good about keeping the conversation respectful.
12:31:18 PeggyG : they are well prepared with their interview questions and have a very clear plan for how the show will go
12:31:53 PeggyG : they don't just talk about teen things--they explore deep conversations
12:32:38 katydel : is there a way my students get a talk with peggy students
12:32:39 PeggyG : their conversation with people experiencing the fires in Australia was fantastic
12:32:52 sheila : Lisa - Do you have the rules posted anywhere online?
12:32:53 stacy : sorry...must run...tennis at 1:00. thanks for an interesting conversation
12:33:02 LParisi : Bye Stacy
12:33:06 LParisi : Thanks for coming
12:33:10 sheila : bye stacy
12:33:15 stacy : bye
12:33:18 LParisi : Sheila, we have made a podcast bout our rules
12:33:29 sheila : great
12:33:34 PeggyG : @katydel--I'm definitely willing but I don't have students. I'm a retired elementary principal :-)
12:34:29 PeggyG : I subscribe to his radio show calendar so I can keep track of the days/times
12:35:34 LParisi : http://www.herricks.org/webpages/spcollaborative/technology.cfm?subpage=...
12:35:50 PeggyG : his music spot always costs me money!!
12:35:53 LParisi : This podcast channel has our skyping etiquette podcast. Just look at podcasts.
12:36:18 PeggyG : I am now the proud owner of 3 new movies because of their reviews last week!
12:37:17 matt montagne : thanks again for your support of the project, Peggy!
12:37:17 liserhoops : Thanks
12:37:22 LParisi : http://ettconversations.blogspot.com/
12:37:22 PeggyG : Thank you everyone! another great conversation!
12:37:30 helenk : thanks
12:37:55 sheila : earthbridges.net/live
12:37:55 LParisi : http://www.ryejrhigh.org/adams/earthday.html
12:38:01 PeggyG : sounds very interesting--breaking down the walls for a class lesson!
12:38:12 LParisi : Bye all
12:38:19 PeggyG : have a great day!

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